Ice Cube: "We Wouldn't Have Rap Music Without James Brown"

Ice Cube’s material has featured several samples of late soul singer James Brown. On the eve of Get On Up, a biopic on the legendary singer-producer that is due in theaters August 1, Ice Cube says that James Brown played a key role in the development of Rap.

“We wouldn’t have rap music without James Brown,” Ice Cube says in a video exclusive to HipHopDX.

Beyond that, the rapper says that Brown’s influence was more than musical.

“Everybody who tried to be funky stole from James Brown,” Ice Cube says. “What we started doing in the ‘80s, he was doing that 30, 40, 50 years ago.”

James Brown was an iconic singer who was known as “The Godfather Of Soul.” His material has been sampled in hundreds of Rap songs, including selections from Nas, EMPD and Dr. Dre.

Get On Up features Chadwick Boseman, who portrayed Jackie Robinson in 2013’s 42, as Brown. The Roots’ Black Thought, Aloe Blacc and Jill Scott also appear in the film.